Mass shooting in Vegas. Eagles take over L.A. Michelle Obama tops conference. | Morning Newsletter
There was a mass shooting overnight, 20 reported dead. Trump tax overhaul could hit Pa. and NJ especially hard. And a cheering goodbye from Phillies to Pete Mackanin.
A shooter opened fire on a music festival overnight at the Mandalay Bay casino in Las Vegas. Details are still emerging but 20 are reported dead and 100 injured. The suspect was killed by police. Check back here for updates. This is the Inquirer's Morning Newsletter. It's free to sign up to get it in your inbox every weekday. If you have thoughts, ideas, or feedback, you can email me, tweet me @JS_Parks, or reach our social team on Facebook.
— Jessica Parks
» READ MORE: Trump’s tax proposal puts Pa. & N.J. Republicans in a bind
President Trump's proposed tax overhaul is causing some problems for Republicans in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Our states are among the biggest beneficiaries of the deduction for state and local taxes, which saves residents thousands of dollars a year and would be eliminated under Trump's plan.
That puts local Republicans in a tough position — vote against their party or face accusations of raising taxes on their constituents?
Our Washington correspondent Jonathan Tamari breaks down the average tax deduction by county, and handicaps the bill's chances.
» READ MORE: Eagles and their fans rock L.A. stadium
The Eagles notched another win Sunday night with a 26-24 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. Even though it was a road game, staff writer Zach Berman says the stadium was so loud and filled with Eagles fans that it felt like a home-field advantage.
(That also may have something to do with the fact that the Chargers, who recently moved from San Diego to Los Angeles, don't even have their own stadium yet and were playing last night on the futbol team's field.)
Quarterback Carson Wentz said the cross-country turnout was something to behold. "I'm kind of starting to not be stunned by our fans. … It's unbelievable."
» READ MORE: More local universities to ban cigarettes
Temple, Cheyney and Lincoln are the latest universities going smoke-free. Cigarettes will be banned not just in dorms and classrooms, but also parks, quads, fields, and anywhere else on campus. It's a growing trend, as across the country, about 40% of colleges and universities are now nonsmoking.
Experts say it's a crucial time to keep people from picking up the habit: "If you do not start smoking by the age of 25, you are almost undoubtedly never going to become a smoker."
But those who are already puffing between classes predicted the bans would be hard to enforce. "I've been smoking for like 11 years; it's not going to stop. Especially going here — I need to smoke," a Temple junior vowed.
What you need to know today
In a trial opening today, federal prosecutors will attempt to prove that a 50-year-old Delco business owner and father of five lived a past life as a Liberian warlord notorious for rapes, murders, enslavement and acts of ritual cannibalism.
At the Cumberland County Jail, inmate suicides are "off the charts." At least two happened while the inmates were supposed to be on suicide watch.
Police are investigating the death of a 4-day-old baby found in a trash bag Sunday.
A small but vehemently angry group of protesters confronted police outside an FOP fund-raiser for a cop being fired after a fatal shooting.
Healthcare PSA: If you're on Independence Blue Cross health insurance, five local hospitals are no longer in your network. Brandywine, Chestnut Hill, Jennersville Regional, Phoenixville, and Pottstown Memorial got booted from Blue Cross' network after a sale-merger Friday.
President Trump said his secretary of state is "wasting his time" trying to communicate with North Korea.
» READ MORE: #OurPhilly
We want to see what our community looks like through your eyes. Show us the park that your family walks through every weekend with the dog, the block party in your neighborhood or the historic stretch you see every morning on your commute to work.
Tag your Instagram posts or tweets with #OurPhilly and we'll pick our favorite each day to feature in this newsletter and give you a shout out to build those followers!
That’s Interesting
All that talk of a retail apocalypse? CEOs who fill some area malls insist it's overblown. "We're still viable. We're not going away. … You're stuck with us."
Unfortunately for winemakers, Jersey is a tough place to grow grapes.
Coming tomorrow: 12,000 people for the Pennsylvania Conference on Women, headlined by Michelle Obama in a forum moderated by Shonda Rhimes.
European-style "food halls" appear to be the latest developer craze, with plans shaping up for one at the Bourse near Independence Hall, another near 30th Street Station and one at 8th and Market. But can they rival Reading Terminal Market? And how many does Center City really need?
For Pete Mackanin's last game as manager, the Phillies gave him an 11-0 "flattening" of the Mets. As he waved goodbye, cheers spread across a half-filled Citizens Bank Park and the dugout emptied to show its appreciation. Mackanin was fired on Friday.
Opinions
We don't always think of big cities as a hub of innovation and efficiency. But our Editorial Board says major metros like Philadelphia are perfect incubators for interdisciplinary problem-solving.
Today is Wrongful Conviction Day, and Pennsylvania has work to do. State Rep. Joanna McClintock writes that innocent people are placed under tremendous pressure to plead guilty.
What we’re reading
The New York Times takes a look at a lucrative new practice area for some big law firms, including Cozen O'Connor in Philadelphia: Investigating sex abuse at private schools.
Debra Newell thought she'd met a great guy — a doctor, a Christian, a fellow divorcee. Her adult children saw red flags. Thus begins a six-part series by the Los Angeles Times titled, intriguingly, "Dirty John."
President Trump called San Juan's mayor a weak leader. Is she? The Washington Post takes a deep look at her record in office.
Supporters are lobbying the Navy to name a ship after Joe Rosenthal, the Associated Press photographer who shot the iconic image of Marines raising the flag on Iwo Jima during World War II.
Your Daily Dose of | Color
Landscapers and gardeners tend to hate milkweed. Many even treat it like an invasive species. But it's actually a native plant and the single most important food source for monarch butterflies, those regal orange-and-black beauties whose population is declining. Cape May's Audubon center is giving out free seeds and launching its first-ever Monarch Festival next weekend.